Samsung's Milk Music service to charge $3.99 per month for ad-free streaming in US

Milk Music is barely two months old, but it's already switching gears in order to stay afloat.

Samsung has published an infographic on its official blog, subtly announcing that Americans will soon have to fork over $3.99 per month to continue streaming ad-free music through its new Milk Music service. You'll get some "exclusive features" as part of the new premium plan, though Samsung didn't describe what they are at all. And if you don't pay up, you will begin hearing messages from marketers.

Samsung introduced an ad-free internet radio service last month that was meant to give a "fresh take on music". It's called Milk Music. You can grab it on Google Play and connect it with your Samsung account. Apart from being limited to US consumers, Milk Music launched as an exclusive to specific Samsung Galaxy/Note devices (like the Galaxy S5, Galaxy S4, Note 2, and Note 3, etc).

Milk Music is different from Samsung's Music Hub. For instance, without requiring a subscription, it offers 200 stations and about 13 million Slacker-powered tunes. Because Samsung joined forces with Slacker, another US-based internet radio service, Samsung didn't have to deal with licensing and partner deals. However, much like Music Hub, it appears Milk Music must also charge customers to remain ad-free.

Élyse is Los Angeles-based and has a decade of journalism experience. She sticks to technology reporting, with a focus on Apple and Google-related news, and has worked in many forms of media, including newspapers and online. She also holds a MFA in creative writing and a BA in multimedia journalism.